Spicy Chili Crisp and Peanut Ice Cream (with Spicy Chili Crisp Peanut Sesame Brittle)

Sweets with a salty, savory hint have always been around—think the pinch of salt in a chocolate-chip cookie recipe. But in recent years, it’s become a selling point. From “salty” caramel to “salted” chocolate chip cookies, the emphasis has really moved over to the savory side of the equation in sweets. And, we’ve seen plenty of sweets with a spicy kick as well. For me, the worlds of spicy, savory and sweet all came together in ice cream form several years ago, with an unforgettable Curry … Read More

A New Podcast, and Kale Ice Cream

I’m not sure which is more surprising: hosting a new podcast about food, or making kale ice cream. But they have a lot to do with one another this week. The new podcast is called Why We Eat What We Eat, and the first episode, out tomorrow, tackles the strangely swift rise in popularity of kale. Last weekend, I decided to make kale ice cream, since one of the discussions around the leafy green in the episode had to do with its versatility. It’s easy to grow, … Read More

Peach Sherbet

posted in: Desserts, Ice Cream, Recipes | 9

I am not sher what happened to sherbet. As a kid in the 80s and 90s, it was always playing second fiddle to ice cream. It wasn’t pungent like frozen yogurt, which made some people dislike the latter. It wasn’t full-on fruity and as tart as sorbet, its nondairy cousin. And it didn’t have, at least in my recollection, too many fat-free or otherwise health-conscious claims attached to it, whether or not those were true (like poor Elaine learned of her … Read More

Sour Cherry Sorbet

Sour cherries, unlike sweet, are just about the sharpest taste you can get from a stone fruit. Eaten raw, these little gems will make your mouth hurt and your face flare up with weird expressions (just try one without making a face). They’re as crimson as cranberries once crushed up. But when cooked with a little sugar, sour cherries take on a unique, classic-candy flavor, which you can’t get from sweet cherries. Not by a long shot.

Saffron Peach Gelato

posted in: Desserts, Ice Cream, Recipes | 3

I’m just mad about saffron. And saffron’s mad about me, lately. For the last three Saturdays, I’ve been helping out my pal Andrew Gottlieb with his new pop-up food business, Tapas Shack, which serves paella among other Spanish delights at Brooklyn Flea’s Smorgasburg. I have pinched saffron into wide, open paella pans until my hands turned a not-so-mellow yellow hue. And I’m not stopping at rice with my current saffron streak. After seeing the first, juicy orbs of peaches for … Read More

Sugarsnap Pea Ice Cream with Mint & Basil

posted in: Desserts, Ice Cream, Recipes | 3

Have you done some spring cleaning of your old recipe ideas? I mean, turn over a new leaf in the way you see ingredients and process how you might prepare them? I’m always looking to evolve from my gut instincts on what to do with a certain familiar food, for better or for worse (sometimes, the simplest, most instinctual answers are best). But spring seems especially fitting for turning that equation on its head, and coming up with a new … Read More

Salty Caramel Banana Ice Cream

When no longer firm enough to enjoy fresh, bananas take on dramatic flavor that carries far. It’s like a second career as a lounge singer instead of receptionist. Pocked with brown age spots on the peel, the overripe flesh is perfect for mashing up into a smoothie, or baked good. But one way to increase the sweetness — even of underripe fruits — is to caramelize it on a pan. That’s what I’ve done with these bananas, before folding it … Read More

Lemon Poppy Gelato

posted in: Desserts, Ice Cream, Recipes | 5

A simple conceit, and a refreshing new dessert. This ice cream flavor takes its inspiration from the combo we often see in baked goods. But this whole category of sweet treats simply doesn’t weigh up to ice cream (or gelato) in my humble opinion. Here, the custard base is lemony and luscious. The poppy seeds add specks of surprising texture that pop, and get stuck in your teeth. And it all goes down cool and smooth, perfect for summer.

Red Bean Ice Cream

I love Asian ice cream, milkshake and flavored tea flavors, but so often they’re sad, powdered relics of the real stuff. The pale green “honeydew” makes me miss the juicy, floral freshness of the real fruit, slushed up, that I’d get in Taiwan. Bright lilac “taro” flavor just plain is not. Although I may never have enough sun to grow fresh, tropical fruit and coconuts here, one flavor I don’t see the need to place in artificial form, anywhere, is … Read More

Ginger Ice Cream with Candied Ginger Strips

posted in: Desserts, Ice Cream, Recipes | 8

Holidays are all about traditions — making them, keeping them. I’ve got a tradition in the works of coming up with seasonal ice cream flavors. I don’t necessarily think this hobby needs a holiday attached to it, but it is a good excuse to make lots of ice cream. Previous holiday seasons have been responsible for creating some of my favorites, like chai, orange spice, cranberry, peppermint, chocolate and five-star anise, and curry-carrot-coconut ice cream. If I could capture the … Read More

1 2 3